What’s In an IQ Score?

There are real world ramifications to insufficient brain health. The recent buzz about average IQ is an interesting conversation however, there are a couple of important aspects to this conversation that need be considered. One is that there is recognition that children, in particular, are suffering disproportionately due to things like malnutrition, poor stimulation and insufficient institutional instruction. As mentioned in a recent article in the Economist, war, disease and poverty are driving forces that oppress children who have no say at all in the process. Next, is that brain health is overall health, meaning that our brains dictate the function of every other system operating in our bodies. There are countless milestones that mark human development. From successful formation of the neural tube in utero to learning to read, brain health is a life long process and optimal brain function is the pursuit to avoid disorder Our brain requires particular doses of nutrients to not only grow but to function appropriately. Fat and protein along with other micronutrients are key components for developing grey matter, especially in children. Finally, brain health directly affects society for obvious and maybe not so obvious reasons. If 22% of the world’s children under the age of five are experiencing stunted growth due to poverty and malnutrition, while another 50% are at risk of being micronutrient deficient, it’s very easy to calculate the number of children at risk of having mild to significant challenges with brain development. A population of developmentally impaired children can result in a population of young adults who have difficulty with optimal brain health. The take away is that there are ways for societies to prioritize and better support global nutrition. And for those if us fortunate enough to live in countries with access to high quality nutrition, structured education and technology, we must do better at attending to our own brain health by leaning in to well-being practices, eating well, getting rest and appropriate kinds of cognitive stimulation. Brain health is health. Psychological health and wellbeing is health. And the stakes are just too high to continue to ignore. Check out the link to read entire article https://lnkd.in/g63YZ2vr